This invention relates to a quick connect sealing and clamping apparatus and method for joining and sealing a device or devices.
In the course of a day, individuals encounter a high number, and a wide variety, of circumstances requiring the connection and sealing of loose ends. From the simple task of joining ends of twine together to adding a section of rope or cable to another section of rope or cable or joining different materials together. More industrial circumstances exist in which cable ends, pipes, tubes and the like must be towed or sealed quickly against the release, or introduction, of contaminants into or from the open end. Additionally, needs arise wherein sheathed cables cease to function efficiently for lack of lubrication and must be replaced. Schott, et al, U.S. Pat. No. 5,107,961 illustrates the state of the art for lubricating cables in the form of a metal clamp that compresses a rubber tube around the end of a cable. A valve aperture is provided for introducing lubricant into the clamp and then the cable.
A wide variety of other solutions have been devised for these problems, from the simple to the complex, from simply tying a knot in the loose end or tying the loose ends together or wrapping the exposed end in tape, for example.
A drawback to the solutions known in the art is that there is no single simple solution for all these connecting and sealing needs. Thus, there is a need in the art for providing a quick connect sealing device which is capable of quickly, efficiently, and inexpensively connecting two ends of material together, sealing and clamping those ends, and/or enabling lubrication of the ends of cables, tubes, pipes and the like. It, therefore, is an object of this invention to provide a quick connect sealing and clamping apparatus and method for quickly, efficiently, and inexpensively connecting and/or sealing opposite ends of a single device, such as wire, cable, rope, or the like, or free ends of multiple sections of materials and/or sealing open ends and enabling lubrication of the open end thereafter.